Canucks' late surge can't catch Lightning

Steven Stamkos #91 of the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrates his goal as Shawn Matthias #27 of the Vancouver Canucks reacts.

Photograph by: Mike Carlson
, Getty Images

TAMPA – The Vancouver Canucks have their timing all wrong.

When they were tight defensively, they couldn't score. Now they're scoring and can't keep the puck out of their net. Their penalty killing was outstanding when it was largely irrelevant, but lately has caused them to lose games. When they needed urgency on those bleak winter nights, often there wasn't enough. Now, they're desperate, but so is everyone else in the National Hockey League.

“It seems to be the story of the season,” Canuck winger Jannik Hansen said Monday after another lost night. “Almost there, but not quite.”

The Canucks almost beat the Tampa Bay Lightning here, almost rallying from three goals down but losing 4-3. Just like they almost beat the Washington Capitals on Friday, and should have beaten the New York Islanders last week.

They are the almost team. They'll almost make if the Stanley Cup playoffs if they win at least nine or 10 of their last 11 games. But they haven't won consecutive games in nearly two months. So they probably won't almost make the playoffs.

With a chance to creep within one point of the Dallas Stars and final post-season berth in the Western Conference, the Canucks fell behind 3-0 and 4-1 to the Lightning before a desperate surge at the end. They were noble in defeat again, but won't feel that way a month from now if they're out of the playoffs for the first time since 2008. And simple math tells you they will be out.

The Stars have played four fewer games than the Canucks. And although Dallas' schedule is difficult, with 12 of 15 games remaining against teams that held playoff spots Monday night, if the Stars go merely .500 and gather 15 points, the Canucks will need to finish 9-1-1 to beat them.

But will they also beat the Phoenix Coyotes and Winnipeg Jets – other teams chasing Dallas and better positioned than Vancouver to catch the Stars?

The Coyotes, also three points ahead of the Canucks before Monday, have 13 games remaining and play top-16 teams eight times. The Jets have the toughest schedule: seven of 12 remaining games on the road and nine games against teams in playoff position.

By contrast, eight of Vancouver's final 11 games are at home. But after a two-game homestand that begins Wednesday against the Nashville Predators, the Canucks play seven in a row against difficult Western Conference opponents.

Again, the almost team hasn't won two straight since Jan. 21, when they managed to beat the two worst teams in their conference.

The Canucks are almost out of hope.

“We've got to keep our heads up. . . keep battling the way we are,” captain Henrik Sedin implored. “We're battling like crazy out there, playing for each other. We've got a lot of injuries but we're still battling, showing we're a team and that we want to play for each other. If we keep doing that, good things are going to happen.”

Yes, but when?

For most of their winter collapse, the Canucks would have offered a lung for more than two goals in a game. But they've scored three or more in five straight and lost three of them.

Goalie Eddie Lack, suddenly a rookie starter after the March 4 trade of Roberto Luongo, isn't making enough saves or getting enough help from teammates.

Lack allowed a soft winner on Monday, letting Tom Pyatt's sharp-angle shot clatter between his skates at 8:47 of the third period. He also was unlucky to have goals credited to Tampa's Valtteri Filppula and Ondrej Palat ricochet in off Vancouver defenceman Ryan Stanton. But those goals came on outnumbered counter-attacks after Canucks Kevin Bieksa and Zack Kassian failed to score on great chances at the other end.

“We have to find ways to keep the puck out of our net,” Canuck Alex Burrows said after another two-goal game. “Two of them, we have 2-on-1s going one way and, I don't know, we miss coverage on the way back and they're able to find the back of the net.”

“The big play is the goal at the end of the second period,” Canuck coach John Tortorella said, referring to Filppula's goal that made it 3-0 at 19:51. “It's a little unlucky, but we put ourselves in a spot that we shouldn't have. We fought back but we come up empty. You can't come up empty.”

Asked about bad luck, Sedin said: “Yeah, but we shouldn't be here, first of all, where you have to rely on bounces to go your way.”

Steve Stamkos, abandoned in the slot during Tampa's first power play, also scored for the Lightning. Hansen, set up by Burrows, had the final Canuck goal when he pushed in the rebound from his shorthanded breakaway past goalie Ben Bishop to make it 4-3 with 4:44 remaining.

Hansen actually scoffed audibly when asked about moral victories.

“We found a way to give ourselves a chance, but it's not a good spot to be in obviously,” he said. “We have ourselves to thank for that. It's a couple of tough breaks on their second and third goals. (But) we have very good opportunities, don't score and it goes the other way and they score.

“We know we still have a chance but, obviously, we need to string wins together and not just three, four or five. We need to start winning games and a lot of them. We're using our lifelines here.”

They're almost out of those.

THE GAME

The Canucks fell behind the Lightning 3-0 and 4-1 before late goals by Alex Burrows and Jannik Hansen gave them a chance to salvage points. But Vancouver lost 4-3 and ended its four-game trip with only two shootout wins and four points when it could have had more. Burrows was excellent, with two goals and an assist, but goalie Eddie Lack was not, yielding a soft winner to Tom Pyatt.

MORE BAD NEWS

Chris Tanev, arguably the Canucks' best defenceman the second half of the season, left the game during the first intermission after blocking a Steve Stamkos one-timer minutes earlier. Tanev may have suffered an injury to his right hand or wrist, and coach John Tortorella gave no indication when he might play. Yannick Weber, dressed as the 12th forward, moved to the blueline for the final 40 minutes.

BY THE NUMBERS

Beleaguered Canuck defenceman Alex Edler, minus-30 when the game began, was plus-one – his first positive night in 26 games going back to Dec. 1. . . Defenceman Kevin Bieksa had a monster scoreline: plus-one with an assist, five shots and seven hits in 24:15 of ice time. . . Alex Burrows has five goals in four games after scoring none the previous 35. . . 16 of 18 Lightning skaters registered shots.

PK KILLED

Canuck penalty killing that led the NHL before getting destroyed in a 9-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 15 has plummeted to 12th, allowing 26 goals on 95 disadvantages since then. Opposition power-play efficiency has nearly tripled, scoring on 27.4 per cent of chances the last two months after being held to 10.3 per cent through 47 games. The Lightning power play went 1-for-4.

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